Breech loading gun



me 15s, 1925. 1,541,931

0. D. LUCAS BREECHLOADING GUN Filged March 5,1923

Patented June 16, 1925} team OWEN DAVID LUCAS, or BAYSWATER, LONDON,EflGIIAND, assieivoa r0 VICKER S LIMITED, or nonnonnnemnn, a BRITISHCOMPANY.

*IBREEGH LOADENG GUN;

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, OWEN DAVID LUCAS, a subject of the King of GreatBritain, r'esiding at 49, Linden Garden's, Bayswater, in the county-OfLondon, England,chave invented certain new and useful I-mprovements inor Relating to Breech Loading Guns, of which thecfoll'owilrg is aspecificae tion. I

This invention relates to. breech loading guns of the kind intended forprojecting signal shells into the air for signalling to aircraft fromaerodromes or ships, these guns being usualy non-recoilingand smoothbored. I

According tothe present invention the breech screw is rotatably mountedin a calrier or cradle which is slidably carried by strut or staymembers forming part of the mounting for the gun tube or barrelfthe saidcarrier being moved: along these members away from the breech end of thetube for loading. The said carrier is preferably made in two parts orhalves held together, with the breech screw between them,by en vgagement'with the said strut members. These carrier parts may havelateralprojection-s provided with recesses conforming to the shape of the strutmembers, these re ces'ses being of curved formation when, as ispreferred, the said members are of circul-a-r crosssection; Gn one sidethe lower wall of the recess in each part of the carrier is cut away andthe corresponding strut memberris also cut away at a point near its rearor lower end so that when the carrier has been moved into theappropriate position the upper part ofthe "carrier can be lifted 'outtopermit the breech screw to be removed, after which the other part of thecarrier can also beqlifte'd out.

In-order that the said invention may be clearly understood and readilycarried into effect, the same will now bedescribed more fully withreference to the accompanying drawings, in which Y Figures 1 and 2 arerespectively a side elevation and a rear elevation showing a Applicationfi'l'ed March 3, 1923. Serial No. 622,516.

gun constructed iniaccordance with the in vention, I

Figure 3 is an axial section-ofthe breech screw, a 1

Figures 4 and 5-areen'd elevations of the upper and lower halves ofthea'foresaid breech screw carrier, and; V Figure '6 is an axial sectionof "the right: hand strut member. 1 Y A, arethe a-foresald strut memtersforming part of the mounting for the gun tube or b'arrelB. {Dhese strnt'members are carried by a ring" B connected to the barrel which ring hasalug'fb trunnioned'to a pillar vC carried by' a base membeni'C having anare C to whieh across member A carried by the lower ends'o f the *s'aidstrut members can be; clamped by a'olalnp ing handle C to hold thegun-tube atthe desired angle ofelevation The mounting shewn is thenavaltype and is-attached by clips to the bridge of the vessel or tostan-chions. Ifthe mounting is required to be self-supporting, the ringB may have two additional lugs to which are attached two additionalstrut members soclr'eting' their lower ends into an extension 'of 'th'ebase member G D is the breerh' s'crew which, in the example shown-," isin the form of a cup having internal interrupted tl reads or collars forengaging with external interrupt'e'd threadsor collars on the rear endof the gun tube or barrel'B-. E, E are the upper and lower halves oft'hebreech "screw carrier in which the breech screw is rotatably mounted,the said breech screw having a circumferential recess (itSShOWH inFigure in which partsof the said halvesfof the breech SCTGYS'Y carrierare disposed, The upper carrier half E has lugs or lateral projectionse, 6 (one each side) I having curved recesses for engaging with thestrut members A, A whiehare of circular crosssection. The lower wall; ofthe ri hthand' recess is" out away as shown in Figuree to still leave aportion of the curved recess below the centre line of the recess so thatthe said'carrier half cannot be raised so long as the right'h'and recessengages with the breech screw rotatably" carried thereby) by Q theengagement of these recesses with the strut members A, A. At its lowerpart the: righthand strut member is cut away atfa/ (Figure 2) on itsinner surface sufliciently to enable the carrier halves to be liftedwithout impedimentwhen the carrier has been. moved rearwards into aposition to bring the right hand lugs or'lateral projections on thecarrier halves opposite the said cut away part of the strut member. Theuppen carrier half is first'lifted with the left hand strut serving as apivot and is then removed. ZThe lower carrier half is then similarlylifted and removed with the breech screw. in position and the latter,can

i then be'removed-fromthe lower carrier half after a firing mechanismcasing E? (which is connected by detachable. pins 6 6 Fig re-2, toinwardly projecting lugs 8 e Figure, 5, on the lower carrier half) hasbeen removed. This casing is situated between the strut 'members A, Aand does not offer anyimpedi'ment to the removal of the said lowercarrierhalf. The firing mechanism is preferably constructed inaccordance with the specification of my.copendihgapplication, Serial No.622,765 filed Marchfi, 1923.

The breech screw carrier has a handle'VE (forming part of the lower:carrierhalf) for moving the carrier and the parts carried thereby alongthe strut members A, A and. thebreechscrew has on its rear part atwohandled lever D by which the breech'screw can be angularlydisplacednfor locking it to and unlocking it fromthe gun .barrel. Thesaid breech screw isheld in its unlocking position during the movementsof the carrier on the aforesaid strut members by" a cartridge extractorE (Figure 1 which-is pivoted to the lower carrier half and which engageswith a notch in thebreech screw. The nose of this extractor engages withan inclined surface b on the rear part of the gun tube as the carrierapproaches the :breech end .ofthis tube and-is thereby disengaged from Ithe notchin'the breech screw. In orderto prevent accidental rotation ofthe breech screw after such disengagement has taken place and before thebreech screw has reached its correctposition forlocking, the aforesaidring B secured to the rear part of the gun tube has a rearwardlyextending narrow plate B having a nose 6 which eng ges Witha recess 51the front collar of casing E the breech screw until the latter occupiesthe correct position for rotation (with the said front collar disposedwithin the ring B at which time the said recess lies in front of thenose?) and the latter does not then impede the locking vmovement of thebreech screw.- The aforesaidupper carrier-halfis formed with a pa'ssageFfi (see Figure 4) to accommodate the nose'b during the above describedoperation. l

I The muzzle'of the guiiltubeis'closed when required by a cap Fpivotedto a' ring F on the tube and means are provided whereby the gun cannotbe-fired unless the cap is .sufliciently opento Jpermit firing to occurwithout danger. For this purpose the pivot pin f of the said cap has aneccentric op erating upon a rod F connected to a member which, when thecap is closed or partly open,

occupies a position obstructing the firing k movement of part of thefiring'mechanism but which, when the/cap issufficiently open,

occupies a position permitting firing movement of the said part tooccur. The Said member may for example comprise a rod slidably mountedin one ofthe' aforesaid 7 strut members which are made tubular.

This particular strut member has a hole in its inner wall for thepassage of the end of the firing plunger described in the aforesaid edby the said-rod when the cap F is-closed or onlyppartly open andlfiring-is thereby prevented.

The gun is fired by a lanyard passing overa swivellin ulle T G ontheaforesaid cross member A this lanyard beingflcone nected tov aspring-controlled slide a (F igure 8 disposed in the right hand strutmemcarried by I What I claimand desire to secure by Let 'ters Patent ofthe United States is-;

1. In a breech loading gun mount, a breech screw, a carrier in which thebreech screw 7 is rotatably mounted, and inclined shockresisting strutmembers comprising part of said mount on which said carrieris slidablymounted, the said carrier"being'movable along the strut members awayfrom the breech end of-the tube for loading.

2. In a breech loadingguma breech screw,

a carrier in which the breech screw is ro:

tatably mounted, and strut "members: on

whichsaid carrier is slidably mounted, said carrier compr1s1ng twosect1ons held together by engagement withthe strut members, the breechscrew being located between said sections. 7 r I 3. Inia breechloadinggun, a breech screw, .a carrier 1n WhlCh the breech screw is ro- 95application Serial No. 6227 65. The pass V fthe plunger through thishole is prevent tzitably mounted, strut members on which said carrier isslidably mounted, said carrier comprising two sections provided withlateral projections having recesses for cooperation with the strutmembers to hold the sections on the strut members and to render thecarrier slidable thereon the lower Wall of one recess in each carriersection being cut away and the corresponding strut member being also cutaway at a point near its rear or lower end to permit removal of thecarrier sections.

OWEN DAVID LUCAS.

